Auto Racing Discussion Thread

[Olympian1010 7,976]

39 minutes ago, Federer91 said:

I just have to say that the windows on the driver cockpits in Indycar are even more ugly than the bridges only F1 cockpits. 

I don’t really care if they’re ugly as hell, or beautiful enough to win a pageant; I just care that the drivers are protected. We’ve seen way too many deaths (and near deaths) in IndyCar in the last decade.

[Federer91 2,796]

33 minutes ago, Olympian1010 said:

I don’t really care if they’re ugly as hell, or beautiful enough to win a pageant; I just care that the drivers are protected. We’ve seen way too many deaths (and near deaths) in IndyCar in the last decade.

 

That window is really ugly and drivers can die a hundred ways in motorsports. They know the risk, when they choose to be a driver. 

[Olympian1010 7,976]

11 minutes ago, Federer91 said:

 

That window is really ugly and drivers can die a hundred ways in motorsports. They know the risk, when they choose to be a driver. 

There’s a difference between calculated risk and stupid risk though. Racing without head protection is stupid risk; racing with head protection is calculated risk.

[heywoodu 15,141]

The way they deal with late cautions in NASCAR is so much better than in IndyCar, where they just say "fuck it, this is the end". Ugh, way to mess up races.

[Olympian1010 7,976]

4 minutes ago, heywoodu said:

The way they deal with late cautions in NASCAR is so much better than in IndyCar, where they just say "fuck it, this is the end". Ugh, way to mess up races.

Yep, I can remember a lot of Indy 500s that end on caution after a late crash. I think the way Indy handles it is more fair (or at least more true to the sport) than NASCAR, even if it’s less entertaining.

[heywoodu 15,141]

8 minutes ago, Olympian1010 said:

Yep, I can remember a lot of Indy 500s that end on caution after a late crash. I think the way Indy handles it is more fair (or at least more true to the sport) than NASCAR, even if it’s less entertaining.

How is it more true to the sport? It's racing, people and basically everyone involved want to finish while racing. Restarts are a part of the sport, whether they are in the 5th or 5th to last lap, nothing unfair about it. This is also not unfair, by the way, but considering both options can be considered fair, I'd choose the more entertaining option (and the one that, in my opinion, is more true to the sport).

 

By the way, 'a lot of Indy 500s that end on caution'? How many is that? Since this is the first one since I believe 2013  

[Vektor 3,326]

7 minutes ago, heywoodu said:

The way they deal with late cautions in NASCAR is so much better than in IndyCar, where they just say "fuck it, this is the end". Ugh, way to mess up races.

No, it's opposite, the way NASCAR is doing is against the spirit of racing. Having an "overtime" in motorsports is just ridiculous. The race is called "Indy 500", not "Indy 500 or 502 or 504 or etc". There's a race distance, and when they reach it, it's over. That's how they do it in the most respected disciplines of motorsport, like F1, Le Mans 24, MotoGP, or the Indy 500. Protecting the traditions of these races and series is important and shouldn't be broken by a huge change like the GWC rule. 

[Olympian1010 7,976]

28 minutes ago, heywoodu said:

How is it more true to the sport? It's racing, people and basically everyone involved want to finish while racing. Restarts are a part of the sport, whether they are in the 5th or 5th to last lap, nothing unfair about it. This is also not unfair, by the way, but considering both options can be considered fair, I'd choose the more entertaining option (and the one that, in my opinion, is more true to the sport).

 

By the way, 'a lot of Indy 500s that end on caution'? How many is that? Since this is the first one since I believe 2013  

It’s more true in the sense that you’re racing 500 miles. NASCAR has a 400 mile race that all of sudden becomes 405, 410, or 415 because of all the overtime starts. While I would absolutely agree the “Green, White, Checkered” finish is more exciting, it is a little less true to the sport since you’re not rewarding the guy who won the race at 400 miles. Plus, you take away the importance of the rest of the the race, since all the drivers know there will be a two sprint finish the majority of the time. Sure, you’ll want to have a good position going into that, but what’s the point when there will mostly likely be a 5-15 car crash that lets you move closer to the front anyway.
 

I’m trying to say either way is better, they both have their own pros/cons in my opinion, I’m just saying that a straight finish is more true to the sport since you actually race a distance of 500 miles to find a winner. It’s unfortunate that races can end on yellow, but that’s the consequence of taking risks for a chance at victory.

 

I can remember at least 3/4 yellow flag finishes in the Indy 500.

[heywoodu 15,141]

7 hours ago, Olympian1010 said:

It’s more true in the sense that you’re racing 500 miles. NASCAR has a 400 mile race that all of sudden becomes 405, 410, or 415 because of all the overtime starts. While I would absolutely agree the “Green, White, Checkered” finish is more exciting, it is a little less true to the sport since you’re not rewarding the guy who won the race at 400 miles. Plus, you take away the importance of the rest of the the race, since all the drivers know there will be a two sprint finish the majority of the time. Sure, you’ll want to have a good position going into that, but what’s the point when there will mostly likely be a 5-15 car crash that lets you move closer to the front anyway.
 

I’m trying to say either way is better, they both have their own pros/cons in my opinion, I’m just saying that a straight finish is more true to the sport since you actually race a distance of 500 miles to find a winner. It’s unfortunate that races can end on yellow, but that’s the consequence of taking risks for a chance at victory.

 

I can remember at least 3/4 yellow flag finishes in the Indy 500.

Well, we'll have to agree to strongly disagree on this  

[Monzanator 4,503]

On 23/08/2020 at 23:41, heywoodu said:

The way they deal with late cautions in NASCAR is so much better than in IndyCar, where they just say "fuck it, this is the end". Ugh, way to mess up races.

 

Hogwash! It's Indianapolis 500, not Indianapolis 510. NASCAR's overtime aka green-white-checkered is pure bullshit for me and artificial gimmick that should be removed but quite frankly they've gone even further with mandatory 4 drivers in the title race at the last race. NASCAR is like the LAST place you search for ideas to improve quality of racing.

 

If those stupid rules were in place in 1998 then Dale Earnhardt would have probably never won Daytona 500

 

If rain-shortened races are valid and someone can be called an Indy 500 winner after actually winning Indy 320 or something then it makes no sense that a potential leader at the 500 mile mark can't be called a winner because of some artificial gimmick. Nobody cares about Indianapolis 510 winners.

 

PS. Thank God for Pigot's crash because Dixon has made this season a complete dud already. I was obviously cheering for Sato here